I was exposed to a bad PTSD trigger on Saturday and dissociated for a bit and have been in a state of derealization since. Now that my therapist helped me not panic about this feeling, I’ve found myself curious about how other people have experienced this.
For me, everything seems muted. People and their expressed emotions, colors, general vibes in different situations etc. Everything is just wrong and unsettling. It’s like everything just isn’t existing enough to feel tangible. Iam fully aware that my perception is very wrong because I’ve asked people if things seem off at all and they’ve said no. I was very scared for like two days until I was able to book an appointment with my therapist and now I’m not as scared and the derealization doesn’t feel as disconcerting, but it’s still there. Hoping things will be back to normal when I wake up in the morning.
Yep. Currently working through Autistic Burnout, and one of my symptoms is Dissociation. Whenever I’m slightly stressed or concentrate hard on something, it kicks in. My head feels a bit “spinny”, but I’m not dizzy; I feel a bit “high”, but without the pleasant buzz of weed; when I move around, I kind of feel like a floating balloon on a string being pulled round by a toddler. My interoception (internal sense) is terrible at the moment, so I don’t get body maintenance signals like need to pee or drink, until I’m almost desperate, and I feel emotionally numb - I mostly seem to only “feel” strong negative emotions, positive ones if felt at all are pretty distant. I also get visual snow - like TV static in my vision - and a “laggy” feeling, which is often independent of, but somehow connected with the dissociation, which feels like living in a 3D game with too low a frame rate - my perception of my movement becomes stuttered, almost like there is a strobe light on, and it feels like I’m moving through treacle. It’s a bundle of fun.
Edit: I’d also intended to say, but I got distracted by my cat asking for food, that I hope you feel better soon. I’m sorry you are having to live through this. I find for me, it takes a few days to a week to wear off after I’ve been stressed - it seems to peak a day or so later, and then peter out over a number of days, as long as I avoid stress. I hope you can avoid your trigger.